Matt Czuchry says 'Good Wife' arc is at right time

NEW YORK (AP) — Mothers always know when something is wrong with their kids.

"My mom commented," said Matt Czuchry, one of the stars of CBS' "The Good Wife" (Sunday, 9 p.m. EST), when his character was arrested on drug charges.

Czuchry said his mother noticed that he was bent over and seemed lower "because of the weight of what was going on." He said she saw him channeling the stress that his character, lawyer Cary Agos, would be feeling by carrying himself differently.

Cary's story line has been playing out this season with various wins and setbacks. His case is going to trial, and he's been offered a plea deal.

In a recent phone interview, Czuchry said his character's arc has been "challenging and rewarding and exciting and difficult."

"Everything has been very taxing in order to make these scenes believable and interesting, where the audience is really feeling what your character is going through," he said.

Sunday's episode is the final one before "The Good Wife" goes on a break until January. Czuchry said it's a big one.

"You can kind of point to specific (episodes) where things fundamentally change with the characters ... and (there's an) overall ripple effect," he said. "I'll be interested to see what the audience thinks."

"The Good Wife" has a big cast with many moving parts. Series regulars include Julianna Margulies, who plays the lawyer-wife of a politician who spent time in prison for a sex scandal; Christine Baranski; Archie Panjabi; Alan Cumming; and Matthew Goode, with Chris Noth in a recurring role and Michael J. Fox among the guest stars.

Czuchry, who played Alexis Bledel's college boyfriend on "Gilmore Girls," says no matter how many scenes he's had or hasn't had, he always sees at it as a learning opportunity.

"I just saw I was surrounded by great actors. Then eventually it became all the guest stars that would come in as well," Czuchry said. "I looked at that as 'this is an opportunity to grow and learn and get better at my craft.' That was an episode-by-episode thing regardless of what material there was or what the story line was. That was my goal, that was the focus and that still is."

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Alicia Rancilio covers entertainment for The Associated Press. Follow her online at http://www.twitter.com/aliciar